It’s My Birthday, and I’ll Laugh If I Want To!

Well, today I am 23! It feels good to be back into the odd numbers (does anyone else prefer being odd ages? Or is that just me being weird? Numbers and I have a close relationship, lol), and although I was panicking beforehand about how my life is not where I thought it would be, I’m not a successful adult, I’m getting way too old, etc. But you will all be happy to know that I have moved past that. Instead, I’m just looking forward to eating some awesome Indian food, having a Slumdog Millionaire viewing party, and maybe a couple drinks. Oh-and brownies! :)

Now, the wonderful Softdrink wants us to write a birthday post this month, partly to get her psyched up for the big birthday she has coming up and also as a mini-challenge with the Dewey’s Books Challenge. And as everyone knows by now, I love making lists!

So, I give you a list of my best birthdays ever:

• Turning nine: the theme was ‘tea party,’ and I invited all of the girls in fifth grade (do you remember those days, when you couldn’t leave out anyone?!), but only the girls I liked actually came (score!). There were about ten of us, plus my sister and her friend, and my two awesome neighbours Mr. Ralph (my surrogate grandfather) and Uncle Bill and Aunt Karen (not real relations, just good friendly Texan people) also put it an appearance. My mom sewed my dress for me, and we even got to use her beautiful tea set that she received from her Egyptian Arabic professor as a wedding gift. It was so girly, and so much fun.
• Turning twelve: no party this year, because my mom took me to see Phantom of the Opera down in London (we lived outside a little town called High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire for my British readers!). We had read the book together earlier that year, and seeing the performance at Her Majesty’s Theater is one of those moments that will last a lifetime. Those first delicious, jarring measures of the overture, as the chandelier went overhead, watching the Phantom sing his heartbreak out while rising in a gargoyle towards the ceiling, the candelbras coming out of the ground in the mist whenever we went down to the Phantom’s lair…it was an amazing night. And my mom also got me the CD recording! :)
• Turning thirteen: we were on a family vacation to Paris (we lived in England at the time). I can’t quite remember if that was the day we just wandered around the city, taking in tourist-y sites and picnicking on cheese and bread, or if that was one of our EuroDisney days. Either way, do I really need to explain why it’s an awesome birthday?!
• Turning eighteen: this happened my first year of college, and I had a brand-new boyfriend who was from Chicago. We went there for the long weekend (my birthday happened to be on Easter that year too), he showed me a great time, and I felt like such an adult. ;)
• Turning twenty-one: this didn’t happen until my senior year of college, long after all of my friends had been going to bars for over a year. It was on a Wednesday, which meant Senior Night. My college made arrangements for a different local (walking distance) bar every night to ffer $1 wells for the students. So, during the day I got deliveries of flowers, cake, and champagne from my parents and sister. And a silly light-up tiara my friends made me wear. Then at night, I went to the bar and all of the drinking-age students from my college were there, and all of them were excited about my birthday. I only had two or three drinks (despite being offered lots of free ones!), so I didn’t get hungover, and I just had a blast!

Well, there you go: my five best birthdays so far. And now, I’m off to primp and get ready for dinner! I’ll try to get a picture taken, so that I can add it this post and maybe even change my avatar. ;)